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March 2016

Archives, like collections in museums and galleries are built with the property of multiple authors and previous owners. But unlike the collection, there is no imperative within the conventional logic of the archive, to exhibit, display or interpret its holdings. An archive designates a territory - and not a particular narrative. The material connections contained are not already authored as someone’s – for example, a curator’s or artist - it’s a discursive terrain where interpretations are invited...

Cineclub #1 will present a selection of Polish films made in the thirty year period between 1950 and 1980, specifically those produced in amateur film clubs supported by factories, mines and steelworks of the Polish People’s Republic. The films present a Polish reality of the period as seen through the eyes of the 'worker', a perspective that differs from the 'official' position adopted by mainstream cinema, propagandistic newsreels, or experimental avant-garde film.

Directors such as Franciszek Dzida, Piotr Majdrowicz, Henryk Urbańczyk, or Engelbert Kral adopted a distinctive narrative style, boldly dealing with topics such as sexuality, consumption, and the relationships between private and public life. They also experimented formally, self-reflectively defining their own position as filmmakers.